How Bolton School is Tackling Boys’ Mental Health

Above, pupils are equipped to lead happy lives during and beyond their years at school

Teaching boys to embrace and understand their emotions is more important than ever, says Heather Tunstall, Senior Teacher at Bolton School Boys’ Division

The current statistics associated with mental health issues in men would probably surprise most people. Did you know, for instance, that the number of 17-to-35-year-old males who commit suicide is higher than the number that die in road accidents, from AIDS and from all violent crimes put together? Or that 11% of eating disorders are with boys?

Out of the 1,200 pupils at Bolton School Boys’ Division, theoretically, at least 270 will suffer from depression at some stage in their lives, and over 100 will suffer from a diagnosable mental health problem. About 50 current boys will self-harm, and about 46 will suffer from debilitating stress or anxiety disorders.

Equipped for the future

Good schools have always centred on pupil welfare, but in recent times, efforts to support the wellbeing of male students has become more crucial than ever.

This is why, at Bolton School, boys’ mental health has become an even stronger focus for our work – not as a response to any particular issue, nor a modish response to societal angst. Rather, we think of it as a proactive approach to ensuring that our pupils understand themselves in the fullest sense, and are equipped to lead a happy and healthy life during and beyond their time at school.

This is far from an “add-on” to school life but instead a central part of it, and involvement and engagement spans across pupils, colleagues and parents.

Above, Bolton School pupils with Senior Teacher Heather Tunstall

To keep that central focus, we have placed great importance on the continued development of our pastoral curriculum. For example, assemblies in November focussed on the links between kindness and wellbeing, and encouraged boys to offer out random acts of kindness and reflect on how this made them feel.

Activities tailored to specific year groups are a fundamental part of our enrichment programme, and we work closely with our Parents’ Association in the design and delivery of our “Teenage Journey” lecture series. Here, we address key themes in sessions delivered by specialist staff and visiting speakers, the most recent of these being Dick Moore.

A learning curve

With a career as a Headteacher, rugby coach and boarding housemaster behind him, Dick spoke about the joys and tribulations of bringing up four boys, before revealing that his son, Barney, took his own life at the age of 21.

He now visits schools all across the country,in the hope that he can encourage people to recognise and help vulnerable children and adolescents when they’re in distress – with the intention that this extends throughout the whole school community.

American research reveals that the first two years of puberty is when children feel the most threatened, says Dick, and while one in 10 will suffer mental health issues at school, things become more acute at university, where the figure is one in six.

Above, the pupils were inspired by Dick Moore’s talk on learning to express their emotions

Young men sometimes feel a need to bottle up their feelings as they fear mockery and embarrassment, but Dick stressed that boys must accept and understand their emotions, rather than hide behind them. Social awareness, self-management, relationship skills and responsible decision-making are more important than any academic subject, he says.

What followed Dick’s talk was enthusiastic discussion from the pupils, and many were moved by the messages within his speech. Several boys have also volunteered to be part of a focus group that will inform our curriculum development over the next year.

Time to reflect

“His message really hit home,” said Sixth Former, Stewart Knights. “I think it’s true that we don’t talk about things. It’s got a bit better now, but it was really difficult in Years 10 and 11. We also need to think a bit more about how we talk to each other.”

George Morgan, another Bolton School Sixth Former, agreed: “The work we’ve done on mental health this year has been really good, but from my point of view, the earlier we can start learning about it, the better. After Dick’s talk, we want to do some work on researching welfare provision at universities with our tutors.

“We’ve spent so much time choosing courses that we haven’t really thought about what might happen if we need support when we go away to study.”

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